Jury rules in favor of drug maker in first Vioxx win in federal courtCase had been heard earlier in Houston, but no verdict reached

JANET MCCONNAUGHEY, Associated Press |
February 18, 2006

NEW ORLEANS - A federal jury handed Merck & Co. a major victory Friday, clearing the drug maker of any responsibility in the death of a 53-year-old Florida man who had a heart attack after taking its once popular painkiller Vioxx for less than a month.

This was the second court victory for Merck, and the first in a federal court.

The company had argued in this case that plaintiff lawyers never proved any link between Vioxx and the 2001 heart attack of Richard "Dickey" Irvin. Merck's lawyers contended Irvin's age, gender and diet all put him at risk for heart attacks

It also was the second time jurors heard the case brought by Irvin's family. In Houston, where the case was heard in November and December, jurors were unable to reach a verdict.

Also, Merck won a state case in New Jersey last year while it lost one in Texas.

Irvin's widow, Evelyn Irvin Plunkett, and two of their children all testified that Irvin's health had been excellent up to his heart attack.

Plunkett left the courtroom in tears without talking to reporters.

"Obviously the family is very upset," said her attorney, Andy Birchfield. He said he would be talking with Plunkett about whether to appeal.

He said the biggest problem was Judge Eldon Fallon's ruling, shortly before the trial, that two of the plaintiff's experts — a cardiologist and a pathologist — could not testify that Vioxx was to blame for Irvin's heart attack. They were experts in their fields, but not about Vioxx, the judge ruled.

Phil Beck, a lawyer for Merck, said he thinks the verdict indicates that the jury found "that the Merck scientists lived up to their legal and ethical responsibilities when manufacturing and marketing Vioxx."

The jury was out for 3 hours and 40 minutes, the shortest deliberation of any of the four Vioxx-related cases.

Observers said the verdict was a clear victory for Merck but that the company will face more formidable cases later this year when it faces plaintiffs who took Vioxx for 18 months or longer. Merck removed Vioxx from the market after a study showed it doubled patients' risk of heart attacks and strokes after 18 months.